World Sight Day: ENTOD Pharmaceutical Organises Free Eye Check-up Camp

On the occasion of World Sight Day observed on October 14, ENTOD Pharmaceuticals conducted around 30 free eye check-up and cataract camps across different locations in the country. Apart from offering free screenings to people, the campaign is raising awareness on the importance of eye health, diseases that can occur and even offer free medication samples to people.

Raising awareness about the importance of regular vision screening is crucial in India where poor vision affects nearly 550 million people and costs the economy US$37 billion every year in lost productivity. The situation is adversely impacted by low awareness regarding the seriousness of the issue and limited access to proper vision care, especially in rural areas. Cultural stigmas, misconceptions and myths surrounding glasses also prevent people from seeking the treatment they need.

Speaking about the CSR initiative, Nikkhil K Masurkar, Executive Director of ENTOD Pharmaceutical said, “Irrespective of how much you care for your eyes, there are times when you tend to miss certain symptoms which can lead to dry eye, red-eye, eye rashes or other eye problems. Though the minor problems can cause very little damage to the eyes, some can lead to vision loss, gradually. Keeping in mind the severity of the issue, we are conducting free eye check-up and cataract camps across different locations on the occasion of World Sight Day. ENTOD is responsible for arranging the camps, providing necessary support to the doctors, arrange awareness or talk sessions and provide eye medicine samples to be delivered to the public for free. With the support of our 400 fellow workers on the ground for this latest campaign, we are ensuring that more people attend the campaign and inform them of the importance of eye health and regular check-ups.”

Two types of camps were being organised for the event – OPD camp and cataract camp. While the OPD camp are held for general eye diseases like glaucoma, dry eyes, red eyes, etc. the cataract camp address the concerns of people who have eye issues like blurry vision which results from the formation of cataracts. Both, government and private hospital ophthalmologists are part of the initiative.

“ Visual impairment deters the ability to perform daily tasks independently and the majority of the causes of visual impairment are treatable. Sadly, awareness in the general public regarding early detection and prevention of eye diseases is very low. A significant number of people with blindness or visual impairment are above the age of fifty years, the most common causative factors being cataract, glaucoma refractive errors and diabetic retinopathy. Regular consultation with an ophthalmologist can identify the cause for visual impairment in time and timely intervention can help the patient get the vision back or at least prevent further loss of vision. Such awareness programs could lead to better understanding and acceptance of the importance of routine eye examinations for the early detection and treatment of common eye diseases, thereby reducing visual impairment in the society,” said Dr. Aarti Heda, Consultant Ophthalmologist (Pune) & Medical Consultant, ENTOD Pharmaceuticals.

Apart from conducting eye check-up camps, to further spread the message on the importance of eye health, ENTOD shared video recordings from young ophthalmologists on their YouTube channel ‘Eye Health by ENTOD’ on World Sight Day. Eye donation is another area of emphasis for ENTOD for which they have tied up with Padmashree Dr S Natarajan, Director of Tele Ophthalmic Society of India, and created the website, Pledge My Eyes.

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